Lincoln MKR concept

By Tim Pollard Motor Shows 02 January 2007 11:49 Lincoln MKR Concept: the lowdown Lincoln will slide the wraps off its answer to the Mercedes CLS at the Detroit Motor Show next week: this luxurious and wedgy MKR concept. It’s the work of ex-Volvo British designer Peter Horbury, who now heads Ford’s Amercian design division, and hints at how Lincolns will look in the years ahead: the Viking-hat grille is straddled by pencil-thin LED headlights, while the flanks of the car are notably uncluttered. Don’t expect to see the 21-inch wheels and ‘Lincoln star’ patterns in the tyre treads on production cars any time soon, though.

SsangYong Korando Sports arrives

SsangYong has extended the appeal of their budget SUV Korando by launching the Korando Sports, a cross between a family car and a pick-up. Now SsangYong are pitching in to the Bob the Builder market with their take on vehicles like the Mitsubishi L200 (which has just been given a five year warranty by Mitsubishi) with the SsangYong Korando Sports. The Korando Sports is a double cab pickup with four doors and five seats that SsangYong says offers a working vehicle with 4WD, 2.3 tonne towing capacity and all the appointments of a family car.

Guzzler program still operating; White House searches for funds

The federal cash-for-guzzlers program continues to operate this morning despite dealer reports that it was to be suspended at midnight last night because it was approaching its $1 billion limit. "It is not suspended," a White House spokeswoman, who asked not to be named, said in an interview today. "We continue to assess the program and its budget." National Automobile Dealers Association spokesman Bailey Wood said Thursday that the group had been told by Transportation Department officials of plans to suspend the program after just six days.